Grant, Howard, Johnson county teams earn spots at international SeaPerch competition in June
Feb. 26, 2019
By Mary Hightower
U of A System Division of Agriculture
Fast facts
- Grant, Howard, Johnson county teams eligible for international SeaPerch competition
- Repeat performances for Grant, Johnson county teams
- For more info: https://www.seaperch.org/challenge
(750 words)
(Newsrooms - With art of winners, competition here: https://flic.kr/s/aHsmB2J6DR )
BRYANT, Ark. – Teams from Grant, Howard and Johnson counties have earned a place at the international SeaPerch Competition at the University of Maryland on June 1-2 after placing in the top two spots in the junior and senior divisions of the regional SeaPerch competition.
Twenty-four teams, plus parents, family, volunteers and 4-H staff and others filled the Bishop Park Aquatic Center on Saturday.
“We had well over 100 people – probably closer to 150 – in attendance,” said Lori Canada, 4-H development coordinator for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture. “All of our competitors did a fantastic job during Saturday’s event. We think we may have even more teams competing next year as a result of this year’s SeaPerch challenge.”
This year’s competition theme was Mission: Rescue & Recovery, inspired by the rescue of a soccer team in a cave in Thailand. For the SeaPerch competition, youth must build their own remotely controlled submersible. They must document their work and be ready to give a presentation about their engineering and show their engineering notebook, in addition to sailing their underwater craft through obstacle courses to complete specific tasks.
Two Grant County junior teams, Speedy Gonzalez and The Titanic Crew, both coached by County Extension Staff Chair Brad McGinley, and his wife, Serena, a teacher at Sheridan Intermediate School, and her colleague, sixth-grade teacher Debbie Bowen, earned spots at the international competition.
Representing Arkansas in the senior category are Howard County Team 1, composed of a trio of brothers and coached by their mom, Lisa Trombley, Chris Woodruff and Samantha Kroll, county extension agent; and Johnson County’s JC Atlantis.
This will be the third time JC Atlantis will go to the international competition. The team’s duo earned a spot in the junior division last year, and this year moves up to the senior division.
“My two girls on the senior team have competed since Arkansas started participating in the SeaPerch contest qualifying and attending nationals three times: at Louisiana State University, University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth, and now the University of Maryland,” said Jeanie Rowbotham, Johnson County extension agent for the Division of Agriculture. “I, and coaches Scott and Michelle Loving, and these girls have worked very hard to prepare for this competition.”
Jean Ince, Howard County extension staff chair for the Division of Agriculture said that this year was “the first time Howard County has competed in SeaPerch. We are so proud of how our teams competed. They learned a lot and look forward to competing again.”
Of the Howard County team, “they are still on cloud nine and cannot believe they won the contest,” Kroll said, adding that for one of the brothers, “this is his main interest … and to see the change it has made in him is huge.”
It’s also the third year in a row for a Grant County team to go to the big competition. Last year, Sheridan Junior High competed in the open division.
“I like how the SeaPerch program teaches critical thinking skills, teamwork, and the engineering design process with real world applications,” said Brad McGinley, Grant County extension staff chair for the Division of Agriculture. “I love to see these students be able to take their concepts and bring them to life and have no doubt that we are developing some future engineers.”
This year’s regional competition was sponsored by the Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas, which also filmed the underwater action with two 4K cameras.
“The Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas appreciate our partnership with Arkansas 4-H to promote the SeaPerch program in Arkansas. We will continue to help grow the Arkansas SeaPerch program to create STEM-based educational opportunities for the youth of Arkansas,” said Rob Roedel, director of corporate communications at Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas.
Overall Winners – Junior category
- 1st Place: Speedy Gonzalez - Grant County
- 2nd Place: The Titanic Crew - Grant County
- 3rd Place: Black Warriors - Poinsett County
Overall Winners – Senior category
- 1st Place: Howard County Team 1 - Howard County
- 2nd Place: JC Atlantis - Johnson County
- 3rd Place: Fire Breathing Rubber Duckies - Grant County
Presentation Winners - Junior
- 1st Place: The Titanic Crew - Grant County
- 2nd Place: Howard County Team 2 - Howard County
- 3rd Place: The ZRS Team - Grant County
Presentation Winners - Senior
- Senior 1st Place: Fire Breathing Rubber Duckies - Grant County
- Senior 2nd Place: Berryville STEAM Cats - Carroll County
- Senior 3rd Place: Howard County Team 1 - Howard County
Engineering Notebook Winners – Junior
- 1st Place: Speedy Gonzalez - Grant County
- 2nd Place: Black Warriors - Poinsett County
- 3rd Place: Smooth Operators - Grant County
Engineering Notebook Winners – Senior
- 1st Place: JC Atlantis - Johnson County
- 2nd Place: Fire Breathing Rubber Duckies - Grant County
- 3rd Place: Howard County Team 1 - Howard County
Obstacle Course Winners - Junior
- 1st Place: Lions Den Tech Club - Montgomery County
- 2nd Place: Speedy Gonzalez - Grant County
- 3rd Place: Spider Monkeys - Johnson County
Obstacle Course Winners - Senior
- 1st Place: JC Atlantis - Johnson County
- 2nd Place: Howard County Team 1 - Howard County
Challenge Course Winners – Junior
- 1st Place: Black Warriors - Poinsett County
- 2nd Place: Speedy Gonzalez - Grant County
- 3rd Place: The Titanic Crew - Grant County
Challenge Course Winners – Senior
- 1st Place: Howard County Team 1 - Howard County
- 2nd Place: JC Atlantis - Johnson County
- 3rd Place: Fires Breathing Rubber Duckies - Grant County
“I’d like to give a huge thank you to Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas and Rob Roedel for their support, along with Bryant Parks and Recreation for allowing us to use their facilities and staff for the day,” Canada said. “It was a great place for the competition and had a great staff to help out throughout the day.”
To learn more about SeaPerch, see https://www.seaperch.org/challenge
For more information about STEM or other youth development activities offered by Arkansas 4-H, contact your county extension office or visit www.uaex.uada.edu.
About the Division of Agriculture
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation’s historic land grant education system.
The Division of Agriculture is one of 20 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on five system campuses.
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and services without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, or any other legally protected status, and is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.
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Media Contact: Mary Hightower
Dir. of Communication Services
U of A System Division of Agriculture
(501) 671-2126
mhightower@uada.edu